Oslo Quiltefestival 2010

Last Saturday morning I took the train and subway (by myself no less!) into Oslo for the Oslo Quiltefestival. It was fun to be among "my people" here in Norway! The show was not large, but there were some really interesting art quilts as well as more traditional quilts to see. Of course, I also enjoyed visited the vendors' displays, too, and found a couple of small kits to buy. Most of the quilting patterns and fabrics here come from the US and Australia, but there are some things done by Norwegian designers. Knitting has such a long tradition here, but quilting is becoming more popular as well. Here are some of the highlights from the festival (you should be able to click on the photos for a larger view):

Utsikt til Sudndalsfjorden by Magda Imregh, Oslo Quiltefestival 2010

The above quilt was featured on the promotional material. It pictures one of the most famous fjords on Norway's west coast, the Sudndalsfjord 

Fjellet Kaller, also by Magda Imregh, Oslo Quiltefestival 2010

by Ulva Ugerup, Oslo Quiltefestival 2010

Oslo Quiltefestival 2010, I think also by Uva Ugerup

Merete Ellingsen, Oslo Quiltefestival 2010

Close up of quilt by Marete Ellingsen.
Gorgeous machine quilting like this on the whole quilt!

Snow!

As the Professor and I went to bed last night, we caught a glimpse of the first snowflakes falling. It was just below freezing, so they were the huge flakes that just float down. This morning we had some very excited kids and about and inch or less on the ground. You can see it is a lovely day, sunny and clear, but the snow has been hanging on so far (it's about 11 am as I write this). I'm enjoying that particular brightness that comes when the ground is covered with reflective white. No doubt this will pass quickly, but it is a taste of things to come!

Frogner Park and Vigeland statues

Entrance to Frogner Park in Oslo

The weather on Saturday was clear and sunny, so we made another trip into Oslo to visit Frogner Park and the Vigeland statues. Gustav Vigeland was a well-known Norwegian sculptor who made an arrangement with the city of Oslo. In exchange for a well-equipped studio and support from the state, he would create this beautiful sculpture garden. There are 192 bronze and granite sculptures here, made from 1924-1943. Vigeland planned the sculptures and executed them in plaster. Then he supervised his assistants as they sculpted the copper and granite. They are all nudes, and they portray different periods of life and different relationships. Many are very playful. 

Bridge lined with copper sculptures

The initial bridge is lined with copper sculptures. On the far side is a center fountain surrounded by more copper sculptures portraying stages of life.

I particularly loved this "flying girl" near the fountain.

The center of the park is the 50 foot monolith carved in granite. It is 121 human figures carved out of a single block of stone.

I especially enjoyed the sculpture groups that featured children. 

And this father/mother/infant sculpture was particularly touching.

After viewing the sculptures, we had time for a picnic lunch and playtime at the Frogner Park playground. It was just a wonderful fall day to be out (and lots of other families had the same idea!).

More adventures with food

So, the Professor and I have seen variations of this "pudding in a box" advertised heavily on TV. It didn't sound or look appealing to us, but the kids desperately wanted to try it. It is just what you might imagine, pre-made pudding sold in a box. We thought it might look somewhat more appetizing served scooped out rather than just cut into squares (see the front of the box). Admittedly, the red raspberry sauce doesn't do anything to improve the looks! The verdict? Only Boy summed it up best, "It's not very chocolatey, it's just brown!" It isn't creamy like the puddings we know, it has more gelatin and less flavor. They sell a vanilla sauce that might taste slightly better on chocolate, although we have found the raspberry sauce is very good on vanilla ice cream. Chalk this one up to: probably won't try that again!

What we learned about Lefse

Sorry about the poor quality photo!

While at the Norwegian Folk Museum, we were able to see a demonstration of lefse making (and, of course, enjoy some fresh lefse ourselves). This was made the old fashioned way, on a large, flat griddle placed directly over the fire. We learned that there are several types of lefse, not just the potato lefse that we Scandinavian Americans eat at Christmastime. This woman was making "mørlefse"  which is soft and sweet. It is made from eggs, flour, sugar, melted butter, buttermilk, and baking powder. You do roll it out flat, but not nearly as thin as the potato lefse we are more familiar with. She told us that this would be made for special occasions, like weddings or holidays, because it has sugar and butter in it, which were traditionally more expensive. The potato lefse would have been less expensive to make, because it doesn't have sugar in it. There is also a lefse that is used wrapped around a sausage, like a flat version of a hotdog bun! We have seen this for sale at the grocery stores. I would imagine this type doesn't have the sugar added either.

Another interesting tip she gave me was to use barley flour when rolling out the dough. Apparently the barley flour doesn't get incorporated into the lefse dough as easily, so it keeps it from sticking. I think this is something like using cornmeal to roll out pizza crust. As soon as I figure out the Norwegian word for barley flour, I'm going to try this out!

The Norwegian Folk Museum

Saturday, we ventured out to explore the Norwegian Folk Museum. We saved the inside museum, featuring cultural exhibits and handicrafts, for another day and opted to explore the park area. Buildings from all over Norway and from different time periods have been moved here and reconstructed to give a taste of Norwegian history and culture. We particularly enjoyed one city building that featured about 4 or 5 apartments, each with furniture and decor from a different era (1905, 1930, 1950, 1979, and present-day). We also had fun peeking into the log homes and farm buildings.

The candy shop, also selling potatoes grown the "old fashioned" way here at the museum

The fall colors are at their peak now.

One of the apartments--children's room from 1905, I think. The dollhouse on left was amazingly detailed.

Storehouse from a mountain farm. Notice the sod roof and log "stilts" to keep it dry.

Interior of an old farmhouse. I cannot imagine doing all the cooking on a corner fireplace like this. The homes are very dark inside and must have been dreary in the long winters.

Wow, a table we could all fit around! Made from almost full length wood planks.

This is a contraption for ironing. You wrap the cloth around the roll and then "press" with the flat wood piece. The carved wood "iron" was a traditional engagement gift from a young man. It was carved to show off his skills. If the young woman accepted the gift, she indicated she was accepting the marriage proposal.

The Holmenkollen Ski Jump

Sunday we ventured into Oslo again to visit A, a friend of a friend (her dad lives next door to my brother) and to get a glimpse of the Holmenkollen Ski jump. The plan was to meet them at the top of the hill/mountain that overlooks Oslo where the jump is located. We would then stroll down, view the jump, and continue on to their home in the neighborhood just below. (As she put it, "if you take the jump, you land on our house"!) Alas, Norwegian weather intervened. It was grey when we started up on the bus and misting when we got to the top of the hill. It turned to an honest-to-goodness rain as we started down on our walk.

I hope to get back again to take better photos, because the jump itself was quite impressive, and the views of Oslo and the fjord would be amazing on a clear day. This is the one shot I took as we went by at a brisk walk. You can see the jump--to either side are stands for spectators, as well as directly in front of the landing area (which is not wholly visible in this shot). There is even a glass-enclosed viewing area. The whole site is under construction in anticipation of the World Championships to be held here in February 2011. There are two ski jumps here now, with plans to build smaller ones as well that can serve as training grounds to help revive the sport. When it is not under construction, I believe you can take an elevator up to the top.

As we rode up on the bus, we went around the back way and got a good look at the top of the jump (the steep part). Middle Child remarked, "I don't think I would want to do that." Thank Goodness! I thought.

We arrived at their place thoroughly soaked despite our raincoats, but she managed to find dry clothes for most of us. We enjoyed soup and bread and waffles along with good conversation. (Waffles are a favorite snack here--A served them with jam and the unique Norwegian brown cheese, a surprisingly good combination!). A is an American who married a Norwegian and has lived here for, I think, going on 20 years or so. They have a daughter the same age as Young Teen.